Three heart-healthy habits you should adopt

Maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system is no longer a matter of guesswork or conflicting advice. Medical science provides us with clear directions about the lifestyle changes we need to make to improve heart health and overall physical fitness. You can experience substantial benefits from adding even a few heart-healthy habits to your daily routine.

Here are three good ones to begin with:

Exercise for 30 minutes, 5 days a week

Cleveland Clinic points out that adding a moderate amount of exercise to your daily routine will lower your risk for heart disease, stroke and diabetes. As a bonus, becoming more physically active also decreases your risk of cancer by 20%. With the broad protection that exercise offers, you will have more energy and be much less likely to need to use your private medical health insurance policy.

Eat breakfast

ABC News reported that a study of 26,000 American men found that skipping breakfast resulted in a 27% increase in the risk of coronary heart disease. Your body needs fuel regularly to keep its organs and systems functioning properly.

Monitor your blood pressure

High blood pressure, also called hypertension, is the strongest risk factor for heart disease, and it generally has no symptoms. For this reason, you should check your blood pressure at least once a year and discuss the results with your physician. If you have been given medication to lower your blood pressure, be sure to take it as prescribed. Dr. David Frid, a cardiologist at Cleveland Clinic, recommends that those with a blood pressure reading regularly higher than 120/80 should talk with their doctor about getting treatment.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States, claiming the lives of about 600,000 people each year. Regardless of how old you are, you can improve the quality of your life and increase your likelihood of living to a healthy old age by taking better care of your heart. You can initiate an exercise routine today, and check your cupboards to plan what you’ll eat for breakfast tomorrow.